5th Grade April Newsletter

The Anne Sullivan School

P.S. 238

1633 East 8th Street Brooklyn, NY 11209 Ap r il 2009 Vo l u m e 1 , I s s u e 6

5th Grade Newsletter April Happenings The fifth grade will be going on a trip to the Hall of Science on Tuesday, March 31. The fifth grade will also continue to work on specific math, reading, fluency, writing, science and social studies GOALS! Make sure that you have a conversation with your child about their goals for the month of April! PARENTS, please make sure that you fill out your parent survey which was given out last month! Our goal is 90% participation! Please help P.S. 238 in this endeavor! There will no school Thursday, April 9 to Friday, April 17, 2009 in accordance of Spring Break! Please make sure that your child does all his/her homework that will be given out on Wednesday, April 8.

Writer’s Workshop In April, we will continue to work on a Report of Information of their choosing. The report of information will be in conjunction with what the students will be learning in Social Studies. The students will be learning how to engage the reader, develop a controlling idea, create an organized report, include appropriate facts and details and provide a sense of closure in their report. Please make sure that your child goes to the library and selects appropriate books, magazines, and websites to help them write a great writing piece!

Mathematics In April, the fifth grade will continue to work on Unit 12 of Everyday Math which focuses on Probability, Ratios and Rates. We will review the meanings and forms of ratios

The fifth grade will be celebrating Earth Day on Wednesday, April 22 and Arbor Day on Friday, April 24, with some fun and exciting activities!

and will solve number stories involving ratios of part of a set to the whole set. The fifth grade will find, write, and solve many number models (equations) for real problems. Parents, please refer to the Family Letter for Unit 12! After

P.S. 238 will celebrate Poem in a Pocket Day on Thursday, April 30th, 2009 in conjunction with Poetry Month.

Reader’s Workshop In April, the students will read and comprehend informational books and reading passages to develop understanding and expertise. The students will learn how to restate or summarize information into their own words; relate new information to prior knowledge and experience; extend their ideas; and make connections to related topics or information in this month’s Reader’s Workshop. Please make sure that your child is reading for at least 40 minutes a night and is recording this information on their reading log! Please make sure that your signature appears in the correct column.

the Spring break, the fifth grade will work on Unit 9 which focuses on Coordinates, Area, Volume and Capacity. We will learn how to plot coordinates on a grid, how to find the area of a specific shape and find the volume of a rectangular and right prism. Parents, please refer to the Family Letter for Unit 9.

Science and Social Studies This month in Social Studies, the fifth grade will continue to learn about Latin America and its many countries. This month in Science, the fifth grade will continue to learn about food and nutrition. So far, in Chapter 3, Lesson 1, the students have learned how important personal hygiene is (having healthy skin, hair and nails and staying in good health. In Lesson 2, the students will learn about healthy teeth and gums. In Lesson 3, the students will learn how to properly care for their eyes and ears.